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“No man’s life, liberty or property are safe while the Legislature is in session.”

– Gideon John Tucker

Legislatures across the country were busy this year considering bills potentially impacting the practice of medicine and the medical specialty of anesthesiology. To assist state component societies in protecting patient safety, the State Affairs Team reviewed more than 2,054 pieces of legislation and 1,982 regulatory measures to date in 2016.

In 2017, every single state will hold legislative sessions. Traditionally, odd-numbered years are more active legislatively because it is the beginning of the two-year legislative term in the vast majority of states. Legislators often introduce their legislation early in session to ensure plenty of time to work bills through committees and to a vote in their own chamber, then go through the same process in the other chamber (unless you live in Nebraska, which is a unicameral legislature).